After the late Sen. Lindsey Graham spent a political lifetime contributing to the history of the country, his sister on Tuesday notched a little history of her own.
Darline Graham Nordone was sworn in on Tuesday to serve out the remainder of Lindsey Graham’s fifth term in office — the first time a sibling has taken the place of a deceased member of the Senate, according to The Hill.
And at the same time, she opened a new chapter in the politics of South Carolina and the Senate.
Most of the Senate was in attendance, The Hill reported, along with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent — two men Lindsey Graham helped confirm to their posts.
Some former lawmakers also attended, as well as the South Carolina House delegation.
Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley, the Senate president pro tempore, administered the oath:
“Do you solemnly swear that you will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, that you will bear true faith and allegiance to the same,” Grassley read.
“That you take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion, and that you will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which you are about to enter, so help you God?”
“I do,” Nordone replied.
“Congratulations. God bless you,” Grassley said.
The swearing-in ends one tumultuous chapter in the Senate that kicked off on Saturday with Graham’s sudden, unexpected death from a heart condition.
It fills the Palmetto State’s vacant Senate seat until January and maintains the Republican Party’s 53-47 majority in the upper chamber, as The Hill noted.
And with Nordone serving as a placeholder, unlikely to run for the seat itself, it also marks the beginning of the political scramble to replace Graham in the Senate next year. Nordone’s life has been largely outside politics, aside from supporting her older brother, a man who effectively raised her after the deaths of their parents when they were young.
The state has set Aug. 11 to conduct a special Republican primary to select a nominee to run against Democratic candidate Annie Andrews.
South Carolina has no shortage of Republican officials who could run to replace Graham, but public statements so far have been few.
Mark Lynch, a South Carolina businessman who challenged Graham in the state’s primary in June, used a post Monday on the social media platform X to announce his campaign.
Rep. Nancy Mace, who is leaving the House in January, has also expressed interest in the seat.
Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. Advertise Today.
